Dear Alchemists,
I’ve been watching Ted Lasso lately, an awesome new show on Apple TV. Not sure what it is? It’s about an American football coach from Kansas City who makes his way to the UK to coach English football. And, it’s terrific.
Without giving away any spoilers, at the end of season one, the show introduced me to a quote which is apparently quite common amongst English football fans: “It’s the hope that kills you”.
In essence, the saying implies that sometimes it’s better to have no hope than to hope for something and have those hopes crushed in a brutal manner. And we get that, now more than ever, as we continue stutter-stepping, then back stepping, then dragging our collective, communal, tired selves through each wave of this pandemic.
And yet, with new and fragile hope, I’m excited to share some really big news.
On October 16th, we’re reopening our Uptown studio in the heart of Minneapolis.
Alchemy Uptown was still in its infancy when the pandemic hit. We closed the studio as part of an overarching conservation effort. As scary as it is to be re-launching a studio under such challenging conditions, we believe we can do so with success.
Truthfully, this launch is bigger than the Uptown studio alone. While we’ve seen growth since the start of the year, we’re still far from stabilized, operating our business today with only 60% of the membership we’d had in March of 2020. After tightening the belt, restructuring, refinancing, renegotiating and now reopening our way through what I hope were the worst days of the pandemic, our company is only about 600 members away from the goal we set for our rebuilding efforts way back in November of last year. That’s only 85 new Alchemists per studio.
Like the reopening of our Tennyson Street studio in Denver, I hope Uptown’s launch will spearhead another critical increase in our membership base to help us reach that goal. That’s why, to celebrate Uptown’s return, we’re bringing back our one-month-free promotion for all of October.
Your first month of membership is free when you commit to 3-months of training with us. This offer is for both new and returning Athletes and is valid on any of our membership tiers at any of our locations.
If you need a sign that it’s time to come back in. Here it is.
I know many of you have stopped commuting to work each day which was a key part of your Alchemy routine. I know that it’s hard to jumpstart old habits. But if you just give it a try, I think you’ll find the effort of getting to the studio well worth it as you walk out after class.
I know many of you have experienced lifestyle and financial changes. But I think you’ll find investing in your physical and mental health is an investment worth making and, frankly, one that’s more important than countless other expenses we all willingly take on each month.
I know that some of you have gotten “out of shape” and might be nervous about getting back into the swing of things. I think that when your coach greets you by name, with a big smile on their face, and helps you select the right weight, the right modifications, and the right workout strategy, you’ll find yourself right back on track to meeting your goals and feeling alive again.
Lastly, I know that many people shifted to at-home workouts over the course of the last year. For some, the convenience of training in your basement is just too nice to give up on. But to put it bluntly, when you find that training on your own calls for more motivation than you can consistently muster; or that the call from your sofa rings louder after a long day than the call from your shiny new Peloton; or when you realize that an emoji high five actually isn’t the same as a real one, or that your virtual coach can’t see you, correct your form, or know your name … come home.
If you’ve found Alchemy just isn’t the spot for you anymore, please go find another local gym. There are thousands of small, boutique gyms in our two markets filled with excellent, passionate, caring instructors that continue to hang on by a thread. So if you feel comfortable returning to in-studio exercise but don’t want to do it with us, consider skipping past the big national players and supporting local business.
Finally, if you’re just not comfortable with the idea of in person exercise due to the pandemic, please know that we understand, support your decision, and will be here if and when you feel like coming back. We’re just a small company with limited options doing our best to reconcile what’s happening in the world with what’s happening to the business. I hope you all understand that.
Ted Lasso tells me that hope is the thing that kills. The statement may prove true in time. Yet, even against the backdrop of a tough, tough year, in the midst of great uncertainty for so many of us, I remain confident and optimistic that in the coming days, weeks, or even months, we will find our hopes coming to life in the most magnificent ways.
Now, as always, PYL.
Tyler Quinn
Click HERE to claim your free month of membership now!
